Good-bye, Kirk, Hello, Anakin! 

Wow! What a difference a week can make! It's Tuesday morning as I sit and write this, and it was last Tuesday evening (Feb. 12th) that the end of the writers strike was officially announced. The next day, Paramount announced that the release date Star Trek XI was being pushed back to May 8th, 2009. According to officials at Paramount, this move is strictly because they believe the film will do better at the box office in May than it would at Christmas, but insider rumors are that J.J. Abrams wanted to tweak parts of the movie, which he was not able to truly do while the writers were still on strike. Either way, most fans seem to be hopeful that this will have a positive outcome for both the movie and the franchise, even though there is much disappointment at the delay.

Checking the release calendar for any more changes before finalizing this last column in this series, I see a major addition that was not there before. Star Wars: The Clone Wars is coming to theaters! The formal announcement was posted to the official Star Wars website Feb. 12th. Perhaps that 24-hour period is some sort of temporal nexus for the theatrical world? Sorry...channeling Christopher Lloyd there for a minute.

Star Wars: The Clone Wars, scheduled for an August 15th release, is an animated feature film using 3-D CGI graphics, and will lead viewers into the new TV series that is set to debut this fall on Cartoon Network. It is set in the timeline after the events of the previous TV series, Clone Wars, and before those of Revenge of the Sith. While not all the casting is known at this time, some of the voices from the previous TV series have already signed for this movie, and more are reportedly in talks. Notably, Anthony Daniels will continue to portray C-3PO, as he has since the first movie in 1977. Many familiar characters will be back, including Anakin, Obi-Wan, and Padmé on the side of good, and Sidious, Dooku, and Grievous working for the Sith. There will also be new characters introduced, including a padawan learner under Anakin, named Ahsoka. George Lucas is the executive producer of both the movie and series, as well as a co-writer. “I felt there were a lot more Star Wars stories left to tell,” Lucas said in the official release statement. The statement also says that plans are for the series episodes to feel like “mini-movies” that bring the full scope of the Star Wars world to our TV screens, and officials at Turner Animation are confident that this will become “appointment television” for kids and adults alike. While not yet officially rated, both the movie and series are reported to be suitable for the same viewers who enjoyed the previous movies and  series. The release statement and other news and information on both the movie and series is available at www.starwars.com/theclonewars which is the official website.

I just viewed the trailer they have on the site (it is unclear if this is from the movie or the series), and it looks wonderful....you can almost forget you're watching animation in some places. Already, some fans have expressed misgivings, particularly with the addition of a padawan for Anakin, but others are positive. Personally, I plan to give it a shot. You can't please everyone, but with Lucas directly involved, and the trailer and stills I have seen so far, it does look promising.

Now, as I am double checking the list of releases for July through December for any other changes, I discover that the calendar has changed a bit. Last week, the release date for Starship Dave (see last week's article for more info) was listed as being May 30th. Now, it is showing as July 11th, and some internet sites are now listing the title as Meet Dave. This may or may not be related to the writers strike, and I have found no information about the date and possible title change. This does serve to remind us all that dates and details are subject to change, and you should check sites such as www.imdb.com and www.firstshowing.net often to get the latest scoop. Additionally, www.firstshowing.net/schedule2008 is the link to the “current” release schedule for the year, as well as 2009. This website works hard to try to insure that they have the latest information regarding release dates, and so far I have found they do a great job. So, on to the rest of the list!

Note: most of these films are not yet rated, as they are still in production, and many do not have an official website. Rather than say it every time, I will simply include it if I have it :)  Also, for some, I may list unofficial websites where info can be found, and those will be clearly marked as unofficial.

THE X-FILES 2 – July 25;  www.xfilesnews.com is one unofficial website for news and info
    Not much is known about this movie, as Chris Carter and others involved are being very secretive. Reports are that it will be a standalone story, not dependent on any of the “mythology” from the series as the first film was. It will star Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny reprising their original roles as Scully and Mulder, and other casting includes Amanda Peete as FBI Agent Pitney and Xzibit as FBI Agent Manheim.

THE MUMMY: TOMB OF THE DRAGON EMPEROR – Aug. 1; check general movie websites for news and info
    Explorer Rick O'Connell (Brendan Fraser) is again joined by his now-older son, Alex (Luke Ford), wife Evelyn (Maria Bello, replacing Rachel Weisz from the previous movies), and her brother Jonathan (John Hannah) on an adventure, this time fighting a resurrected Chinese emperor (Jet Li).  Alex is tricked into awakening the “Dragon Emperor”, who had been cursed by the sorceress Zi Yuan (Michelle Yeoh) into eternal suspended animation, and the O'Connells have to stop the emperor from resurrecting his 10,000 strong warrior army.

BABYLON A.D. - Aug. 29; PG-13; www.myspace.com/babylonadmovie (listed as official; however, the video did not seem to work for me)
    Vin Diesel plays Toorop, a mercenary hired to escort a woman, Aurora (Mélanie Thierry) and a nun (Michelle Yeoh – boy, she gets around this month) from a post-apocalyptic Russia to NYC. Toorop discovers that Aurora has been genetically altered and now possess a virus that could wipe out the whole human race.

DEATH RACE 3000 – Sept. 26; check general movie websites for news and info
    This film is a remake of the cult classic Death Race 2000 from 1975. In this new version, set in the “post-industrial wasteland of tomorrow” (think Mad Max), Jason Statham plays Jensen Ames, a champion driver and ex-con who is framed for a murder he did not commit. The prison warden (played by Joan Allen) coerces Ames to become the masked, mythical driver Frankenstein, and compete in the Death Race. Driving a special car with such weapons as machine guns and flamethrowers, Ames must race his way through a gauntlet of vicious criminals intent on violence and death.

SCANNERS – Oct. 17; check general movie websites for news and info
    Very little is known about this remake of the 1981 sci-fi horror movie. In the original film, a scientist infiltrates a group of telepathic and telekinetic humans who have the ability to literally blow people's minds and plan to take over the world. What little I found indicates that this film will have the same general plot, but will be updated. Casting has not been released.

QUANTUM OF SOLACE – Nov. 7; www.007.com
    This is the 22nd Bond film, and is set immediately after the end of Casino Royale. It has been revealed that there are double agents in both Her Majesty's Government and the CIA, and Bond is tracking a traitor when the trail leads to Haiti. Bond is also searching for information on Vesper Lynd, the girl he fell in love with in Casino Royale, who turned out to be one of the traitors and was killed. In Haiti, Bond meets Camille (Olga Kurylenko) who helps him find Dominic Greene (Mathieu Amalric), a member of the Green Planet organization. Greene is the film's main villain and has ties to Vesper. Bond is working to prevent Greene from overthrowing a Latin American country, stay ahead of the CIA, terrorists, and M, and keep his desire for retribution for Vesper's death in check.

THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL – Dec. 12; check general movie websites for news and info
    2008 must be the year for remakes, as this film is a remake of the classic 1951 sci-fi film about an alien and his robot companion who visit earth. Set to star are Keanu Reeves as Klaatu, Jennifer Connelly as Helen Benson, and Jaden Smith (son of Will Smith) as Helen's son Jacob. It is not known if the new movie will be true to the original film, or the short story on which it is based, which do differ  somewhat at the end.

Well, that's the end of my look at sci-fi, fantasy, and similar movies for 2008. Some things will likely change, especially later in the year, but such is the nature of the movie industry. Watch for reviews of some of these films during the year, as well as possible updates on news and developments.

(For reference listings used, please see previous articles.)